By Andriy Larin

Since its establishment in 2007, UNRCCA Mandate is to liaise with the Governments of the region on issues relevant to preventive diplomacy, supporting regional dialogue and political initiatives of the countries of the region; to provide monitoring and analysis; to maintain contact with regional organizations and facilitate coordination and information exchange.

In addition, the Centre is mandated to provide an overall framework and leadership for the preventive activities of the UN country teams of Central Asian countries and in terms of Afghanistan: to maintain close contact with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), to ensure a comprehensive and integrated analysis of the situation in the region.

The Agenda of Water, Peace and Security has been moving steadily to the top of the international agenda in recent years. Increasing water scarcity around the world threatens to become uncontrollable as global climate change intensifies. The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2018-2028 as the International Decade for Action “Water for Sustainable Development” and indeed water plays a key role in the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Our Center’s experience of the water diplomacy efforts in Central Asian states and Afghanistan, in spite of the new political dynamics, still need time and efforts to agree on mutually beneficial solution for the use and management of the shared water-energy resources and deal with the environmental degradation.   

Trans-boundary water resources in Central Asia of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and bordering Afghanistan, primarily come from the two large rivers: the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya. Both rivers feed into the Aral Sea, with the Amu Darya River originating in Tajikistan and Afghanistan and flowing through Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, and the Syr Darya River originating in Kyrgyzstan and flowing through Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. The trans-boundary nature of the rivers means that their efficient usage and peaceful management depend on regional dialogue, cooperation, and trust.

The water management system instituted by the former Soviet Union, premised on the exchange between upstream and downstream countries of water and energy, no longer exists. In the years following the independence, the countries of Central Asia have adopted new legislations and formed their own national priorities in this field. No durable or sustainable framework or agreements have been reached, so far at the regional level. And, as a result, such way of management of water could potentially become a source of tension in the region. Moreover, the continuation of inefficient water usage has led to the near disappearance of the Aral Sea, with significant negative consequences for ecosystems and communities. In addition, Afghanistan is expected to increase its water usage as the situation in the country stabilizes, including for irrigation purposes.

Following its establishment in 2007, UNRCCA adopted a Programme of Action endorsed by the countries of Central Asia. In the Programme, the Central Asian countries and Afghanistan prioritized the need to identify sustainable arrangements in water and energy usage. In the past two years, UNRCCA has conducted a number of regional meetings in Central Asia with the participation of Afghanistan national experts to build dialogue and consensus in this area.

Since the recent past, the Center has substantially revised its work with the countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan on the water and energy. Based on new approaches in the context of growing water scarcity around the world and the growth of global climate change, as well as taking into account the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a new three-year strategy/project instead of the yearly discussed and agreed plans, was agreed with the countries to support regional cooperation on transboundary management water resources for 2019-2021.

To increase the capacity of national experts in water strategy, a training seminar gathering experts from Central Asia and Afghanistan, was organized on the UNRCCA platform in Almaty last June. The upcoming next event – a seminar - is planned later this year in Dushanbe to increase the awareness of participants, establishing contacts, and to understand key issues and the benefits of collaboration in this sector. At a meeting scheduled for the end of this year, an ad-hoc expert group on transboundary water management will be re-established, consisting of national experts nominated by the governments of Central Asia and Afghanistan.

For 2019-2021, the focus of the activities will be on fostering and supporting initiatives, both continuing and completely new, that we hope will create an environment conducive to regional cooperation on trans-boundary water in Central Asia.

Our strategy calls for the establishment of National Working Groups in each of the five countries of the Region and Afghanistan that will ensure continuity and encourage closer cooperation among key actors. We will continue to offer training opportunities to stakeholders in Central Asia and Afghanistan to enhance their skills and provide important opportunities to interact in person to build confidence and promote regional cooperation with a view to developing discussion on a possible regional agreement (or agreements) on trans-boundary water in Central Asia. UNRCCA will also conduct a range of outreach activities, including among the public as well as specifically among students in Central Asia, to raise awareness of key issues related to trans-boundary water.

The following are the outcomes expected from cooperation of Central Asia and Afghanistan on Water Strategy:

OUTCOME 1.

PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY AND CONFIDENCE-BUILDING

This outcome has two main work streams:

• UNRCCA will continue its close communication with stakeholders in each country with a view to ensuring ongoing dialogue on trans-boundary water.
• The Centre will connect existing expertise within the region to advance the preventive diplomacy and confidence building to establish conditions for dialogue among the countries. This will include engaging local experts as well as studying and showcasing existing efforts, including at the local, bilateral and international levels that hold best practices and lessons learned for the Aral Sea Basin as a whole. 

OUTCOME 2.

STRENGTHENING INSTITUTIONS AND LEGAL FRAMEWORKS

The main work streams are:

1. UNRCCA’s ongoing capacity-building efforts in water diplomacy and water law and longer-term efforts towards a regional legal framework for managing trans-boundary water in the Aral Sea Basin.
2. Particular outreach in this area will be devoted to officials from Afghanistan in addition to the five Central Asian countries.

OUTCOME 3.

INCREASING TRANSPARENCY, ENHANCING RELATIONSHIPS, AND PROMOTING PARTNERSHIPS

There are the following work streams under this outcome:

Research and information sharing and awareness-raising. We are seeking to deepen the analytical basis for regional cooperation and to improve the availability of information and data among decision-makers, academics and the general public to foster common understandings of the key issues.

RISKS AND MITIGATION STRATEGIES:

The main risks that could affect project implementation are a downturn in regional dynamics and a lack of political will to address issues of trans-boundary water. To mitigate these risks, UNRCCA will maintain close contact with National Working Groups of Central Asia and Afghanistan and other stakeholders and promote the importance of preventive diplomacy and regional cooperation for the good of the people of the region and beyond.

United Nations Regional Center for preventive diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) is ready for cooperation.

Mr. Andriy Larin works as Political Affairs Officer with the UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL CENTRE FOR PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY FOR CENTRAL ASIA (UNRCCA)

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